ATPnovel Chapter 121: Four-Square Horse Stance Perfected, Blood Energy Infusing the Limbs
Chapter 121: Four-Square Horse Stance Perfected, Blood Energy Infusing the Limbs
The sun hung high, its early summer rays carrying a touch of scorching heat.Half an hour had passed, and though the tall newcomer’s movements still seemed clumsy, his ability to endure the for so long left everyone stunned.
This technique was notorious for grinding down muscles and tendons. For an ordinary apprentice to hold out for the time it takes an incense stick to burn was already impressive.
Yet this Li Xiang, this towering figure, stood like he was forged from iron.
It wasn’t just a matter of abundant blood energy—clearly, his muscles and tendons were far stronger than those of an average martial artist!
Even more baffling was that his dantian’s blood energy was nearly depleted, yet his movements remained flawlessly smooth, without the slightest hint of error.
It was almost like the steel machines in the embassy district!
This bizarre spectacle was why Old Liu had stopped Zhao Mu, who had intended to interrupt earlier.
Sunlight filtered through the locust tree, casting dappled shadows. In the shade, a glint of something different flickered in the old martial artist’s weary eyes.
At some point, he had pulled over a pearwood chair. His face showed no emotion, but his heart churned like a stormy sea.
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But the Wan family hailed from the embassy district, their bloodline exceptional.
Beads of sweat, large as beans, dripped from Xiangzi’s forehead.
Truth be told, for Xiangzi, practicing the was easier than the he’d trained before.
At least the “blood energy grinding bones” that other apprentices groaned about came effortlessly to him.
Compared to the agony at the Li family mine, where swallowing blood marrow felt like his organs were splitting apart, the hardship of the was nothing.
There was just one problem—this crude “flood irrigation” method of seeking the vital gates of the limbs consumed too much blood energy.
Even with his three pillars of blood energy, he couldn’t sustain it.
At this moment, Xiangzi was holding on by sheer willpower.
Since leaving the Li family mine, he hadn’t felt this kind of utter blood energy depletion in a long time.
Aching, exhausted—
Yet his mind was entirely focused on the golden characters flashing in his head:
[]
[]
Perhaps the was too profound, or maybe his blood energy was drained too fiercely, but his was progressing faster than usual.
and he could integrate the into his panel.
Sweat blurred his vision, stinging his eyes like fire as it mixed with dust.
He paid it no mind.
Suddenly, his body stiffened slightly.
The onlookers let out a collective sigh, and even Old Liu’s weary eyes flashed with a trace of regret imperceptible to others.
Martial arts were like climbing a peak—one lapse in momentum, and regaining it was near impossible.
Old Liu thought.
He stood slowly, about to offer a few words of advice, when his body froze.
Staring at the tall figure’s movements, his face filled with disbelief.
—
A line of golden text flashed before Xiangzi’s eyes: []
After more than half a year of grueling stance training and over a week of intense practice, he had finally reached perfection!
In that instant, his depleted dantian seemed to bloom with spring rain, blood energy surging forth.
His three pillars of blood energy spun like dragons, faster and faster, until they intertwined tightly, coalescing into a crystalline, radiant crimson—like a ruby pillar.
A torrential aura enveloped Xiangzi.
With a single thought, his blood energy surged toward his limbs and bones!
A low hum reverberated from his spine.
The —he had entered its threshold!
Immediately, another line of text floated in his mind:
[]
[]
Xiangzi exhaled in relief, his body utterly drained, and he staggered as he withdrew from his stance.
Then, he froze.
Within a few yards around him, a crowd had gathered, including several black-robed disciples who had come to watch the spectacle.
At that moment, everyone’s eyes held a trace of unconcealed astonishment.
Comprehending the in a single day—Baolin Martial Hall hadn’t seen such a feat in years.
The last to achieve it was the Wan family heir, famed as a
—
Perhaps shaken by the new apprentice’s display, the first-class apprentices trained with unusual vigor that afternoon.
Even the usual complaints about the ash-throwing drill were absent.
Seeing the newcomer handle the ash with such ease, the others pushed their blood energy to the limit, determined to compete.
But when it came to “ash endurance,” who could outlast Xiangzi, tempered by years in the mines?
Thus, in the afternoon, Xiangzi was the only one standing steady in the ash.
Notably, the chubby Chen Jiashang performed admirably. Though he hadn’t grasped the , he lasted until the third-to-last before collapsing in the ash.
Second only to Xiangzi was, naturally, Qi Ruiliang, whom Zhao Mu had called out to demonstrate earlier.
After this, no one dared underestimate the tall newcomer.
Senior Brother Liu, who had pulled strings to get Xiangzi admitted, beamed so widely his wrinkles seemed to bloom.
The old martial artist didn’t reward Xiangzi publicly. Instead, he quietly instructed Zhao Mu to deliver an extra packet of after training—
A talent like this needed careful nurturing, not excessive spotlight.
With this, Old Liu felt a surge of confidence about the major event six months away.
—
In his room, under the faucet, Xiangzi took a refreshing bath.
he thought,
In the mirror, his complexion seemed fairer—
Xiangzi chuckled to himself, slipping into a grey robe prepared by the servants. Embroidered with a small golden knife, it marked him as a first-class apprentice.
The fabric was soft, thin, and breathable—nothing like the coarse grey robes that wrinkled with sweat.
Rumor had it the first-class apprentice robes were woven from flax grown near the Chen family mine outside the city. Not a mystical plant, but worth dozens of times more than ordinary linen.
Wiping his face, Xiangzi felt invigorated.
Suddenly, a knock came at the door.
Opening it, he was met with a refined, smiling face.
“Brother Li, apologies for the intrusion,” said Qi Ruiliang. “Since it’s your first day in the first-class courtyard, a few of us thought to host a feast in the kitchen to welcome you.”